Comments on: Ideas for Storing Jewelry Supplies?

By: Dianna

Dianna — Tue, 13 Oct 2020 15:33:09 +0000

You ladies have great solutions! I’ll add my two cents. I found these small plastic organizers at Dollar Tree that measure 5″ x 7″ and have 11 small compartments. These are perfect for jumprings and smaller finding. I then label the tops with the sizes and organize by color. (copper, gold, silver, etc) Each color has their own box.
Another tip if you buy from Fire Mountain Gems – The label on each item you receive will peel off the plastic bag they come in pretty easy, so you can put that label on your container to identify when you need to re-order. Thank you for all the great ideas!! It can be overwhelming as we all know how bead stashes get out of hand, LOL

By: Chris H

Chris H — Mon, 07 Sep 2020 20:30:10 +0000

I have such an extensive stash that I finally had to resort to taking digital phone pictures of each box contents, numbering the box where it was plainly seen, and storing the colored prints of the photos that I labeled with the box number, in clear plastic protectors in HUGE binders. Now when I need “something”, I no longer have to go through my stash to find multiple possibilities, i go through my binderS, use bookmarks, and work a design that way. It also helps when i have to put beads BACK where they came from and minimizes (not eliminates) “bead soup”.

By: Nicole Green

Nicole Green — Thu, 03 Sep 2020 12:49:31 +0000

I recently watched a video by beadifulnights showing us how she stores her beads. I have purchased 280 containers thus far. They are found at Dollar Tree. You get 10 clear square containers for $1. They are hard to find because they hang vertically on those strips attached to shelves. Good luck!

By: Claudia

Claudia — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 19:26:02 +0000

As far as my beads …. I don’t sort too much. For me, my things could be well sorted, and then I buy some new beads, and have no place to put them except maybe in a box of a different color. I’ve had this Jewelry crafting business for 28 years, but I have been making Jewelry since I was 9 years old. (I am now 67). I like to buy those flat, soft plastic, crafting boxes from Michael’s Craft store. That said, I do store all the Swarovski Beads in a separate box. I have a few cardboard boxes of “All Stone” and “All Glass”, and “From The Sea”. I probably have enough beads to work on that will last me all of my life! I wish I had the room to spread these boxes out a little more, but I don’t. Even if I hit that Lottery … I will still be making Jewelry to sell – I love it THAT much !

By: Barbara Sims

Barbara Sims — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 15:04:17 +0000

Hi.
I’ve been in the jewelry making business since 1984 an have found that the best is sorting by color. This way if your making say aqua earrings an want matching beads you go right to the color. I have Mine in the 7 “to 10” that have 3 drawers each. I now have 30 of these filled. I sort my lucite flowers n leaves by color also.
Hope this helps. Stay Safe, Barbara

By: Maryjane

Maryjane — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 14:33:06 +0000

Wow, thank you everybody! You have some great ideas that I think will work for me.

By: Sandy

Sandy — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 14:30:01 +0000

I sort by type and then color. I use small (2×2 or 3×4 inch) plastic zipper bags to keep like items together. If you buy the kind of lunch meat that comes in the plastic containers with lids, you can wash those and then use them to keep items separate. For my beads in tubes, I put tubes with the same size beads into one container. For beads I put bags or strings into the container and label the end, not the top. When they are stacked you can see the label, it is easy to get a box from the bottom of a stack of 4 or 5. I have also been using the bags and boxes to make kits of projects I am working on.

By: Lynn E.

Lynn E. — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 14:21:48 +0000

I now use divided plastic boxes from Harbor Freight after becoming frustrated trying to store my beads in zip top bags. I put a note into each compartment showing where I bought the beads and the cost per bead.So far this has worked well for me. All of my beads are sorted by color which saves time and makes designing easier too.

By: Debra Lowe

Debra Lowe — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 14:19:05 +0000

Yep, Dee and Cindi have the exact idea, I store and box all my findings, beads, wire, rings, etc. It’s the wall paper in my workroom, but thicker. I think Dee and I are both obsessed because I also have about 200 boxes. I also label them, dark, light, AB, etc. A great time saver.

By: Elizabeth A Reid

Elizabeth A Reid — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 13:34:04 +0000

I make my own jump-rings for chainmaille. I usually cut a number of different sizes and materials at the same time. So I store the different sizes in left over medicine bottles and now also add the AR to the label. I bought a couple of plastic spice holders at Bed Bath and Beyond and the medicine bottles fit right into the spaces of the racks. They are pull out-drop down shelves and I label the shelves by gauge and type of metal. Very handy this way and pretty compact storage.

By: Nancy Rocknich

Nancy Rocknich — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 12:04:01 +0000

I sort by type (glass, gemstone, seed) then by color for my beads. Findings are by type also (earring, clasps, jump rings etc) These are all stored in plastic boxes labeled on the front so when they are stored on a shelf I can see at a glance what I am looking for.

My seeds/delicas are stored in a type of box I found at Harbour Freight for those in the US. It is a plastic box with 24 smaller boxes inside for small parts. About $4.00 US. These are great.

But you don’t have to buy plastic storage boxes, cardboard boxes can work also. This is what I used when I got started and did not have a lot of money. Washi tape made them presentable. Have fun sorting.

By: Dee

Dee — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 11:12:15 +0000

In reply to Cindi Bernloehr. That is exactly what I do Cindi. After 30 years of jewelry making, I now have about 120 boxes full!

By: Cindi Bernloehr

Cindi Bernloehr — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 10:58:52 +0000

I sort my beads by color. I use 9×12′ flat boxes with small dividers and each box is a color. I also have a box for brass, copper, silver beads, separate box for earrings, jump rings, headpins, bead caps and leftover chain bits. I store strands of beads and chain on hooks on pegboard. Believe me your “stash” will grow and it helps the creative process to have it organized.

By: Rena Klingenberg

Rena Klingenberg — Mon, 31 Aug 2020 21:21:18 +0000

Hi Maryjane! If it’s helpful, here are ways that other jewelry artists (including me) store and organize our stashes, tools, etc:
https://jewelrymakingjournal.com/category/jewelry-making/jewelry-studio/